Harpers Nursery school

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children thrive in this nurturing and calm environment. Staff are exemplary role models. They are highly skilled in developing warm and respectful relationships with children and their families, and they actively encourage children to be helpful, caring and kind to others. Staff are sensitive, and they use children's individual, real-life experiences to develop their awareness of the world. For example, a child's recent visit to hospital led to a role-play opportunity of simulating a doctor's surgery. This gives children an excellent awareness of additional needs, including special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).

Children are extremely well mannered, demonstrating advanced social skills for their age. They regularly praise their friends for their efforts, using phrases such as 'well done' and 'great job'. This highlights children's high levels of emotional awareness and shows their advanced self-regulation skills. Staff have exceptionally high expectations for all children and place high importance on supporting children's independence skills. For example, children independently prepare and serve snack to their friends, with very little adult support. Snack time is a fantastic experience for children to build their confidence and social interactions, especially for those affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and those who need extra support.

Children have myriad opportunities to learn about the world. Staff actively encourage children to develop a in-depth understanding of the life cycle of animals. They regularly observe the seasonal changes and enjoy watching creatures, such as chicks, tadpoles and caterpillars. As a result, children remember new words they have learned, such as 'chrysalis' and 'incubator'. Staff have implemented technology into children's learning, which allows children to watch the mother bird return to her nest and feed her chicks. This helps children to gain an impressive understanding of the wider world.

What does the early years setting do well and what does it need to do better?

• The curriculum is ambitious, creative and inspires all children to learn about the world around them. Staff are extremely knowledgeable, highly skilled teachers. They follow children's interests exceptionally well, adapting conversations and activities to best support children's learning. Children are making rapid progress in their learning and development as a result of the consistent opportunities to build on their knowledge and skills.
• Staff provide a language-rich environment. Children have an abundance of opportunities to engage in exciting conversations with staff. For example, as they engage in a bug hunt, staff introduce words such as 'burrowing' and 'centipedes'. Staff have recognised the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on children's communication skills, so they plan activities to target this. For example, children engage in a bingo game, where they independently take turns to describe each card. As a result, children are developing excellent language skills by extending their vocabulary, learning new words such as 'bannisters'.
• Children display consistently positive attitudes towards their learning. They are active, independent learners, who thrive due to the learning experiences and stimulating resources available to them. For example, children display high levels of focus as they engage in role play in the mud kitchen. Children spend prolonged periods of time following recipe cards to create their own 'spring rolls'. They show pride in their achievements as they share what they have made with staff and their friends. This reflects children's advanced social skills and gives them the opportunity to celebrate their success.
• The managers and staff work incredibly closely and take swift action in making referrals for children with SEND. The communication between staff, parents and other external agencies is exceptional. They share information regularly, such as progress checks, to discuss any concerns or gaps in children's learning. The manager invests heavily in the well-being of all children and ensures that children receive the support they need. Children with SEND are making good progress in their learning.
• Parents are extremely complimentary of the staff and setting. They value the support they receive to extend children's learning, including support for toilet training. Parents comment on the abundance of learning opportunities available to the children and particularly like the access they have to outdoor spaces. They refer to staff as 'nurturing, caring and friendly' and say the care their children receive is 'outstanding'.
• The inspirational manager works extremely closely with her long-standing staff to embed foundations for children's early years education. She uses highly effective evaluation strategies with her team. For example, they regularly observe one another and the manager to provide constructive feedback. This shows their passion and dedication to improving their already outstanding practice, which is worthy of sharing with others.